Vol. 507 No. 3
31 Mr. Currie asked the Minister for Defence the number of attacks on UNIFIL positions in South Lebanon in recent weeks; the situation on the attacks in the Irish Battalion area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16583/99]
37 Mr. Creed asked the Minister for Defence the military, political and diplomatic initiatives undertaken by the Government following the death of the young Irish soldier in South Lebanon; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16586/99]
38 Mr. G. Reynolds asked the Minister for Defence if he has satisfied himself that the Israeli backed South Lebanese Army will in future refrain from firing indiscriminately at Irish UNIFIL positions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16731/99]
47 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for Defence if he will report on his recent visit to UNIFIL. [16733/99]
51 Mr. McGahon asked the Minister for Defence the plans, if any, he has to downgrade the Irish contribution to UNIFIL; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16730/99]
70 Ms Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Defence if he will give details of his recent talks with the Israeli and Lebanese authorities; his views on the continuation of Irish peacekeeping in South Lebanon; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16578/99]
72 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for Defence the results of his consultations with the Israeli authorities following his recent visit. [16655/99]
75 Mr. Bradford asked the Minister for Defence the current situation in South Lebanon; his views on the number of attacks being made on UNIFIL forces; the initiatives, if any, he has taken on this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16579/99]
93 Ms Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Defence if he will give details of his recent talks with the Israeli and Lebanese authorities; his views on the continuation of Irish peacekeeping in South Lebanon; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16803/99]
94 Ms Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Defence the current situation in South Lebanon; his views on the number of attacks being made on UNIFIL forces there; the initiatives, if any, he has taken on this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16804/99]
97 Ms Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Defence the number of attacks on UNIFIL positions in South Lebanon in recent weeks; the situation regarding the attacks in the Irish Battalion area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16807/99]
98 Ms Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Defence the military, political and diplomatic initiatives undertaken by the Government following the death of the young Irish solider in South Lebanon; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16808/99]
As more than three of these questions are oral questions, the time limit is trebled.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 31, 37, 38, 47, 51, 70, 72, 75, 93, 94, 97 and 98 together.
These questions fall into the category of those to which I have already given a comprehensive answer. I am happy to take further supplementary questions and the reply may be included in the Official Report on the basis that the House is in agreement.
Additional information
As I indicated to the House on 1 June 1999, the death of Private William Kedian and the injuries to Private Ronald Rushe and Private Darren Clarke on 31 May 1999 while serving with the 85th Irish Battalion in Lebanon were the subject of immediate protest by UNIFIL Headquarters, Naquora, to the Israeli defence forces who undertook to conduct an investigation at the highest level. A formal letter of protest was lodged by UNIFIL with the Israeli defence forces on 2 June 1999.
A preliminary report was also forwarded immediately by UNIFIL Headquarters to United Nations Headquarters, New York. The United Nations Secretary-General condemned the attack. United Nations Headquarters conveyed a strong protest in the matter to the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations who had been summoned to United Nations Headquarters. A letter was also sent to the President of the Security Council with the details of the incident.
At my request the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Andrews, summoned the Israeli ambassador to Ireland to Leinster House on 1 June 1999 to protest the matter to the Israeli authorities. The Minister for Foreign Affairs expressed great concern at the loss of life and serious injury to Irish peacekeeping personnel and, on behalf of the Government, protested the incident of 31 May 1999 in the strongest possible terms. He also expressed the Government's grave concern at the pattern of recent incidents involving firing close to and at IRISHBATT positions. He insisted that there must be an immediate cessation of such incidents and demanded that the Israeli Government take firm action to prevent such targeting of the UNIFIL contingent. In response, the ambassador regretted the loss of life and injury and undertook to report to his authorities.
In view of the continuing escalation of hostile activity in the UNIFIL area of operations and the risks which this posed for Irish personnel serving there, I decided to visit the area from 20 to 22 June 1999 to see for myself the situation on the ground and, more importantly, to raise the seriousness of the matter with both the Israeli and Lebanese authorities and to seek assurances that the recent reckless shelling of IRISHBATT positions by the Israeli defence force de facto forces and the armed elements – Hizbollah – would not recur. To give an indication of the level of escalation, there has been a total of 38 firings close to IRISHBATT positions between 14 May 1999 and 25 June 1999.
During the course of my visit, I met the Lebanese Minister for Defence and the Israeli Minister for Defence. I sought assurances from my Lebanese and Israeli counterparts that there would not be a recurrence of these recent serious shelling incidents. I indicated to both sides that, while Ireland is committed to the UNIFIL mission, should there not be a cessation of such incidents, serious consideration would have to be given to the withdrawal of the Irish contingent.
Arising from an incident involving an IRISHBATT position on 20 May 1999 which resulted in extensive damage to the post, including the destruction of a UN truck, I requested that the Department of Foreign Affairs protest the matter to the Lebanese authorities and on 3 June the Irish ambassador at Cairo, who is accredited to Lebanon, lodged an official protest with the Lebanese ambassador to Egypt. The Lebanese Minister for Defence expressed regret at the recent incidents and reaffirmed the gratitude of the Lebanese Government and people for the presence of the Irish UNIFIL troops. He assured me that the grave concern expressed regarding the present situation would be raised at Cabinet and with other contacts.
During my meeting with the Israeli Minister for Defence I stressed to him the utmost gravity with which the Government regards the recent incidents involving Irish troops, including the death of Private Kedian and the critical wounding of Private Rushe.
As the House will be aware, in an earlier incident in February last, Corporal Noel Roche and Private John Flaherty were injured when their post was fired on. Further heavy shelling on 10 June 1999 resulted in damage to Irish positions but, fortuitously, there was no loss of life on that occasion. On 11 June 1999, at my request, a further strong protest was lodged by the Department of Foreign Affairs with the Israeli ambassador, following which the Irish ambassador to Israel also lodged a protest with the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the 15 June 1999. In response to the very strong protest which I made, the Israeli Defence Minister said he was very disturbed by recent events in South Lebanon but that the situation was very difficult and very complex there. Referring to the Southern Lebanese Army, the Minister said that while they were trained, equipped and paid by Israel, they did not take their orders from Israel. He undertook that explicit instructions would be given to the SLA arising from my protest but that it was difficult to give full assurances regarding a cessation of firing incidents such as I had sought.
The safety of Irish personnel serving overseas is always of paramount concern to me and to the Government. While no absolute guarantees can be given with regard to the safety of troops serving in missions such as UNIFIL, it is my policy to ensure that Defence Forces personnel are adequately trained and equipped to carry out their mission. Each post within the Irish UNIFIL area of operations has reinforced concrete bunkers specifically designed to withstand direct and indirect fire from heavy weapons. Rigorous operational procedures are in place to ensure that personnel occupy these bunkers in a timely fashion should the need arise. In such eventuality, minimum protected duty personnel remain in place to ensure operational activity is observed and reported.
Physical security in the form of equipment and engineer works at posts and checkpoints is continually being improved. Irish troops are issued with a modern range of weapons and equipment.
When the Minister visited the Lebanon, how did he find the morale of the Defence Forces? Is he happy with the level of morale having regard to the tremendous pressure involved?
Deputy Fitzgerald and others were in the Lebanon some weeks before I visited it. I understand from chatting with them that they found the members of the Defence Forces in great fettle. I also found that.
I was particularly anxious to visit the B Company, where the late Private Kedian had served. Obviously, that was an awful trauma, a big setback and a great worry to everyone. Notwithstanding that, I found them in tremendous form. It is a great tribute to their training and to their dedication and commitment that they had overcome that. Obviously, there will be memories and shock for a while, but they were back on duty. Of course it is important for their safety and security to concentrate on the job. In so far as one could say, they were extremely happy. One could not have been happy because of what happened, but morale was high.
I join the Minister in paying tribute to the troops because the 85th Battalion, under Lt. Col. Pat Nash, has come under great pressure.
On another occasion I expressed concern that there are many very young recruits involved. I would have the same concern in relation to Kosovo. The Minister reassured the House at that time that a balance between experienced personnel and new recruits would be maintained. Will he also give us that reassurance in relation to Kosovo? The pressures on young recruits cannot be underestimated in this sort of situation. We have seen it at first hand, and it is most demanding. I would certainly not want to cause undue worry to the families, but it is extremely important that recruits, particularly the new younger ones, have the support of older experienced officers and men in the Lebanon and in Kosovo.
I assure the Deputy that in terms of the selection of the contingent, which first and foremost is on a voluntary basis, proper training and gearing up for whatever may be expected in the context of the mission will have the right balance. The Deputy should bear in mind, however, that if I were gauging reaction on morale, I would say that the older members were harder hit than the younger members of the Forces. There are obvious reasons for that. The Deputy underestimates some of those young people—
No. I am just saying it is an issue about which we should be vigilant.
I know she is not saying that. I am merely saying one does so at one's peril in terms of their ability to manage. We are witnessing the development of enormous commitment and expertise throughout the economy.
Since UNIFIL was established in 1978, the Irish Government has lodged various protests with the Israeli and Lebanese Governments. To date this year, five protests have been lodged with the Israeli Government. The Israeli ambassador was summoned to Leinster House on 1 June following the tragic death of Private Kedian. Yet, as recently as 11 June, a further protest was lodged with the ambassador regarding a series of six close firing incidents involving the Irish UNIFIL contingent on 10 June.
One uses the available instruments in terms of calling in the ambassador and protesting to the relevant Governments. The circumstances surrounding these incidents are very complex. Notwithstanding that, there is no justification for what has happened. It is not possible to control everything, especially in a tense situation. The available options are limited. I assume the Deputy did not expect me to declare war. I was anxious to meet the defence Ministers and convey to them the seriousness with which we were treating the matter. I hope and pray my visit will have some effect because the past few months have been very tense, difficult and dangerous.
Has any decision been made on the overseas allowance which has not increased for many years? The Minister was involved in discussions on the matter. An increase in the allowance would be a practical way of showing we value the work of overseas troops.
I gave a very firm commitment this year, as I did last year, on the overseas allowance. Once the pay deal was dealt with, a new proposal was issued by RACO and PDFORRA and is currently in conciliation. I look forward to a speedy resolution of the matter, subject to negotiations with the Department of Finance.
